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Grayken Program in International Real Estate - London 2023 · Wednesday, May 24, 2023

General Sir Mark Carleton-Smith

Former Chief of the General Staff of the British Army

General Sir Mark Carleton-Smith was both the youngest Army Chief in over a century and the longest serving since the Second World War. He was also the first Commander of the SAS and United Kingdom’s Special Forces to become the Head of the British Army. He retired from the Army in December 2022.

As Commanding Officer of the SAS post 9/11 he commanded all UK Special Forces operations across the Middle East and South Asia predominantly in Iraq, Yemen and Afghanistan, including serving as Commander of British Forces in Afghanistan at the height of the war. Mark has also been the Army’s Director of Policy and Resources and its Strategy Director. He was subsequently the Head of Military Operations in the Ministry of Defence directing all Army, Navy and Air Force operations in the campaign against ISIS in Iraq, Kurdistan and Syria; and he formulated the strategy to reinforce Ukraine in the wake of Russia’s seizure of Crimea. He supported the National Security Council under Prime Ministers Cameron, May and Johnson.

During his tenure as Army Chief, Mark completed the withdrawal of forces from Afghanistan; directed the provision of military training and equipment to Ukraine following Russia’s invasion in February 2022; and he executed the reinforcement of NATO’s eastern flank in the Baltic States and Poland. As the author of the Army’s future strategy he led the digital transformation and strategic modernisation of the British Army to structure, train and equip it for the Information Age.

He sits on the International Advisory Council of the Warsaw Security Forum and lectures internationally on geo-political strategy, defence, security and international relations and he is Colonel Commandant of the SAS.

A recipient of the MBE, OBE and CBE he was knighted for his service in 2018 and he is also a holder of the US Legion of Merit.

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